One of the principle benefits of using ProForma is that it empowers teams to collect the information they require with less burden on their Jira administrator. We’re pleased to announce that ProForma 2.0 not only makes it easier for teams to collect the data they need, it also makes it easier for them to use that data to measure and categorize their work.

Customized Data Collection for Business Teams

Different teams need different pieces of information. Facilities needs to track locations while HR needs to track vacations. Even within one team, different bits of data will be required depending on the request type. Creating and deploying forms attached to Jira issues empowers teams to collect exactly the data they need for a given process without requiring the creation of new custom fields. Teams can easily collect the data they need, structured the way they want and validated to conform to their business rules. Best of all, you get this great functionality in a system you're already familiar with.

Piping Data to Jira Fields

That’s great for getting the data needed to fulfill a request. But what if you want to do more with your form data? What if you want to use it in metrics and reports so you can continuously refine and improve your business processes?

The ProForma form builder lets you link form fields to Jira fields, thereby leveraging JQL and Jira reports. Let’s consider some ways this functionality could benefit your business teams.

More detail on frequently submitted requests

Imagine that your Marketing team is using ProForma to receive requests for new content creation. They have installed the ProForma process template and they can easily look back to see how many submissions of that request type were received in a given period. But what if they want more specific information? Perhaps they would like to know the number of requests for specific types of content (blog posts, flyers, brochures, newsletter articles, etc.).

The content type field on the form could be set to pipe through to a Jira field (custom created or a standard Jira field that’s not being used). If our Marketing team were to pipe the data through to the Jira Label field, they would then be able to query that data and see how many requests there were for each type of content. Armed with this information, the Marketing team can forcast upcoming needs, allocate resources to meet the demand, and coordinate production of markeitng assets.

Requests received vs fulfilled

An IT team might use ProForma to manage requests for new hardware. Like the Marketing team, they could pipe form data to Jira fields where they could then query them to find out how many requests there were for desktops, laptops, smartphones, etc. This information could be coordinated with procurements to track the quantity of an item requested vs the quantity purchased, how many new machines of each type were actually purchased vs. how many were re-allocated from other parts of the organizations, etc.

The ability to create forms specifically designed for a given request type lets teams collect the information they need. The fact that those forms are backed by a Jira workflow empowers teams to carry out the request fulfillment process. And the ability to pipe form data through to Jira fields means teams can query and use form data any way they need to. The possibilities are almost endless, but one thing is certain. Helping business teams better manage and measure their requests will result in better service, happier employees and an overall big win for your organization.